What Does the Song, 'This Is Me' Mean?
2023-08-12
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1Hello. This week on Ask a Teacher, we will explain parts of a song for a listener.
2Question:
3I have a song I want you to explain.
4It is This Is Me from the Greatest Showman.
5Masafumi, Japan
6Dear Masfumi,
7Thanks for writing to us.
8The song you asked about is from a 2017 movie about P.T. Barnum.
9He started his circus, a traveling show featuring unusual animals and people, in 1870.
10He gathered performers of all kinds for the show.
11One was a very small man. Another was a very tall woman.
12A woman named Josephine Clofullia had a beard; her face was covered with long hair.
13In her act people called her a "bearded lady."
14In the movie, Hugh Jackman plays the part of P.T. Barnum.
15One of his lines in the movie expresses his view of the unusual people he employs:
16 "Every one of us is special, and nobody is like anyone else. That's the point of my show."
17The actor who sings the song This Is Me in the movie is Keala Settle.
18She plays the character Lettie Lutz, a bearded lady, in The Greatest Showman.
19Now that you know about where the song appears and who sings it, let us look at its meaning.
20The song is about strength in the face of criticism.
21The singer confirms her individuality and self-acceptance.
22Here are the words of the song showing its basic meaning. First, the criticism:
23Hide away, they say
24'Cause we don't want your broken parts
25I've learned to be ashamed of all my scars
26Run away, they say
27No one will love you as you are
28Next, her resistance to it and self-acceptance:
29When the sharpest words wanna cut me down
30I'm gonna send a flood, gonna drown them out
31I am brave, I am bruised
32I am who I'm meant to be, this is me
33To be "bruised" can mean to have marks on one's skin from a blow.
34But it can also mean a person received an emotional injury.
35Another image we can draw from the song's words is the person who hears a "different drummer" and marches, or moves forward, to that beat.
36Look out 'cause here I come
37And I'm marching on to the beat I drum
38I'm not scared to be seen
39I make no apologies, this is me
40The song uses a common expression about a person who does not follow the expected path.
41That person is "marching to the beat of a different drummer."
42In one part of the song, the singer uses "we" to include all of the unusual performers in the show.
43We are bursting through the barricades
44And reaching for the sun (we are warriors)
45Yeah, that's what we've become
46I hope this answers your question, Masafumi.
47You may also find it interesting to know that Barnum was against the practice of slavery before it became illegal in this country.
48And the ideas presented in the movie The Greatest Showman are being debated today.
49Do you have a question for us? Write to us at learningenglish@voanews.com and we will try to answer you in another Ask a Teacher.
50I'm Jill Robbins.
51And I'm Dorothy Gundy.
1Hello. This week on Ask a Teacher, we will explain parts of a song for a listener. 2Question: 3I have a song I want you to explain. It is This Is Me from the Greatest Showman. 4Masafumi, Japan 5Answer: 6Dear Masfumi, 7Thanks for writing to us. The song you asked about is from a 2017 movie about P.T. Barnum. He started his circus, a traveling show featuring unusual animals and people, in 1870. He gathered performers of all kinds for the show. One was a very small man. Another was a very tall woman. A woman named Josephine Clofullia had a beard; her face was covered with long hair. In her act people called her a "bearded lady." 8In the movie, Hugh Jackman plays the part of P.T. Barnum. One of his lines in the movie expresses his view of the unusual people he employs: "Every one of us is special, and nobody is like anyone else. That's the point of my show." 9The actor who sings the song This Is Me in the movie is Keala Settle. She plays the character Lettie Lutz, a bearded lady, in The Greatest Showman. 10Song meaning 11Now that you know about where the song appears and who sings it, let us look at its meaning. The song is about strength in the face of criticism. The singer confirms her individuality and self-acceptance. 12Here are the words of the song showing its basic meaning. First, the criticism: 13Hide away, they say 14'Cause we don't want your broken parts 15I've learned to be ashamed of all my scars 16Run away, they say 17No one will love you as you are 18Next, her resistance to it and self-acceptance: 19When the sharpest words wanna cut me down 20I'm gonna send a flood, gonna drown them out 21I am brave, I am bruised 22I am who I'm meant to be, this is me 23To be "bruised" can mean to have marks on one's skin from a blow. But it can also mean a person received an emotional injury. Another image we can draw from the song's words is the person who hears a "different drummer" and marches, or moves forward, to that beat. 24Look out 'cause here I come 25And I'm marching on to the beat I drum 26I'm not scared to be seen 27I make no apologies, this is me 28The song uses a common expression about a person who does not follow the expected path. That person is "marching to the beat of a different drummer." 29In one part of the song, the singer uses "we" to include all of the unusual performers in the show. 30We are bursting through the barricades 31And reaching for the sun (we are warriors) 32Yeah, that's what we've become 33Connection to social issues 34I hope this answers your question, Masafumi. You may also find it interesting to know that Barnum was against the practice of slavery before it became illegal in this country. And the ideas presented in the movie The Greatest Showman are being debated today. 35Do you have a question for us? Write to us at learningenglish@voanews.com and we will try to answer you in another Ask a Teacher. 36I'm Jill Robbins. 37And I'm Dorothy Gundy. 38Dr. Jill Robbins wrote this lesson for VOA Learning English. 39______________________________________________ 40Words in This Story 41bruised - adj. injured in a way that causes discoloration to the skin 42barricade - n. a line of vehicles or other objects placed across a road or open space to stop people from getting past, for example, during street fighting or as a protest 43What do you think of the song, This is Me? You can listen to all of in in the video above. Let us know in the comments below.